Wisconsin 65, No. 3 Michigan 62 (OT): By now you know that Ben Brust pulled a Rotnei to send the Badgers to overtime. That was the made-for-TV moment in this game, but the extra period was classic win-ugly Badger basketball. Holding the No. 3 team in the country to just a single Tim Hardaway, Jr. layup in a crucial extra period was big-time, and it’s why Wisconsin is once again a lock to make the tournament, and very likely to give higher-ranked opponents fits for the remainder of the season.

Meaningful Results

No. 20 Georgetown 69, St. John’s 63: Georgetown has been on a steady rise back into the national picture following an offensive dry spell that dropped them out of the top 25 for a while. With Otto Porter (19 points, 14 rebounds) setting the cruise control, and his teammates coalescing around him, this team is in good shape, but the challenges of the Big East are as powerful as ever. These Hoyas battle No. 24 Marquette and No. 17 Cincinnati in their next two games, and still have two games against No. 9 Syracuse on the horizon.

No. 8 Miami 87, North Carolina 61: Back when I used to listen to the radio a lot, I remember Casey Kasem would say a new single was “Number 8 with a bullet!” That was a way of saying that the song was rising up the charts so fast that it was a presumptive number one, but just hadn’t gotten there yet. That’s what Miami looks like right now. Duke may claim the spot based on the arcane math of polls, but Miami has the bullet on ther jerseys right now.

N0. 21 Missouri 98, Ole Miss 79: This game made headlines in part because Mizzou has found their offensive rhythm again, against a team that was recently making a case in the SEC. The other part was because of a fight that happened during the game. With a bit of a power vacuum behind Florida in the weakest BCS league going this season, this is a big win for the Tigers.

No. 14 Butler 59, George Washington 56: Playing in the A-10 hasn’t been a bed of roses for the Bulldogs, so this narrow win is meaningful. Butler would probably look better with a pass-first point guard who could dedicate himself to getting the ball to Rotnei Clarke, but Clarke hasn’t done too badly in the role. He didn’t turn the ball over once and dropped off four assists in between shots on a 14 point day.